During a recent visit to New York City, I had a chance to visit Meow Parlour. The city’s first cat café opened last December. The concept follows that of most cat cafés in this country: visitors can spend time with adoptable cats while enjoying food and drink. Meow Parlous allows visits ranging from half an hour to up to five hours. They offer free Wifi, so you could get some work done while in the company of cats.

The café is a brightly lit open space. I loved the double-fail-safe entry which will prevent any kitty escapes even during busy times. You walk in through a set of glass doors and register with a staff member, and then enter through a second set of glass doors into the actual café. Once you enter, you’re asked to remove your shoes and clean your hands with hand sanitizer.

This was my first visit to a cat café, and I have to say, there’s something magical about walking into a space filled with so many cats. There were about eight or ten cats. We came during nap time, and with two exceptions, all the cats were napping in various cat beds and cubbies. The space is catified to the nines with climbing shelves, tunnels and napping spots.

All of the cats seemed to get along, and loved to be petted. Meow Parlour works with rescue group Kitty Kind, and they clearly know the cats in their program well. Not every cat would easily adapt to an environment like Meow Parlour, so cats are carefully chosen and are given time to acclimate before being let out with visitors. All adoptions are handled through Kitty Kind. Meow Parlour will not do same day adoptions, and will not adopt cats out of the immediate New York City area.

Since health department regulations in most cities don’t allow animals and food on the same premises, Meow Parlour has a separate space for its food and drink service just around the corner. The Meow Parlour Patisserie offers coffee, tea, cold drinks and baked treats. Unfortunately, the photo I took of their amazing cat-shaped macaroons came out completely blurry, so you’ll have to make do with this photo of other cat shaped cookies. Meow Parlour has runners who will deliver your refreshments to you at the café. Reservations are recommended, although they are starting to take some walk-ins during slow times.

For more information about Meow Parlour, and to make a reservations, please visit MeowParlour.com.

I want to go to a cat cafe really bad. Years ago I used to go to a restaurant when my ex used to take me to Kauai. It was called Tomcats. I doubt it’s still open The service was always horrible and the food just ok, but we went for the cats. They had ferals in the small section of that town and having an open area in the restaurant allowed cats to walk freely through it. Most didn’t get near people but there were a few that would stop by for table treats. The place was decorated in cat decor and had some silly names on the menu. I can’t remember them all, but I remember they spelled mayonnaise as meownaise.